The horrific gun massacre at the Washington Naval Yard has done farily little to reignite the gun control debate. This is not surprising, considering the state of the debate following things like #Aurora #Tuscon and #NewTown.

Those opposed to any sort of gun control are focusing on the wrong parts of the 2nd Amendment and the fact that media outlets identified the weapon incorrectly – missing the point again. Horrifically, and with continuing fatal consequences.

In the wake of the tragedy, The American Journal of Medicine has pushed ahead the publishing of a study about gun rates and gun deaths – and how high ownership rates directly correlate to high gun deaths.

The findings are unsurprising, but important.

Here's the most important excerpt:

“There was a significant correlation between guns per head per country and the rate of firearm-related deaths with Japan being on one end of the spectrum and the US being on the other. This argues against the notion of more guns translating into less crime. South Africa was the only outlier in that the observed firearms-related death rate was several times higher than expected from gun ownership.”

The only country which didn't line up with the results was South Africa. That's it.

As a pastor, I feel it is my duty towards the Wesleyan idea of “Social Holiness” to speak out on this issue. The Christian cannot let this status quo remain. The Christian should be outspoken when common sense proves Biblical principles.

I hate people who bandy about terms that start with the word “biblical,” but this is actually true.

The goal of Christian involvement in this issue doens't have to be to support measures which remove all guns from the hand of civilians. However, each and every Christian should search their hearts for whether or not they should actually own one, let alone what they believe about the issue.

My friend, Christian – @csalafia & homebrewedtheology.com – wrote this amazing open letter to the neo-con, Washington think-tank posing as a United Methodist renewal group, The Institute on Religion and Democracy. There is scripture. There is Book of Discipline. It has it all, and should haunt the consciences of all those who inhabit the Washington

My friend Joel – @eJoelWatts & unsettledchristianity.com – has commented on some of the racist rhetoric permeating the various gun rights advocacy groups online (here and here). I have been taking on a particular group, NAGR (it is beginning to look less and less like a coincidence) – The National Association for Gun Rights. Here

Joel Watts – http://www.unsettledchristianity.com – wrote a nice little piece about how the Constitution of the United States takes on cult-like status with many of it's staunchest supporters. This hasn't been more clear than in the wake of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School. There are many highlights from the article, but here is

This is a graphic used by NAGR – The National Association for Gun Rights. They have been using it for quite some time. Not just in the wake of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary – as they seek to preempt proposed gun control measures – but much of the last year. To be clear,

I don't tend to be one to care much about being politically correct. I do, however, understand the context around which certain terms were used to promote hatred and persecution of a particular group of people or ethnicity. I also understand the relationship between certain ethnic groups, which have often led to one believing it

In the movie The Last Supper – nothing to do with Jesus’ final meal – a group of friends invite interesting people over for dinner. Over time, they invited people who were more controversial and disagreeable. Eventually, they got to the point where they invited the people they judged to be the worst of their guests –

Alex Jones is a radio talk show host, based out of Austin Texas. From his early work helping to rebuild the Branch Davidian complex, he has been a firebrand mouthpiece for neo-patriotic libertarianism ™. Every conspiracy theory you have ever heard, dealing with the New World Order and “big brother,” has been championed by this